Florida U.S. Representative Matt Gaetz (R-FL-01) filed a formal ethics complaint against former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA-20) on Tuesday after the California congressman allegedly elbowed Tennessee U.S. Representative Tim Burchett (R-TN-02) in the back while passing him in a hallway.
While being interviewed by NPR reporter Claudia Grisales, Burchett alleged McCarthy elbowed him in the back, saying it caught him “off guard” as the hit was a “clean shot to the kidneys.”
Burchett said he “chased after” McCarthy after getting “sucker punched,” however, was blocked by the former speaker’s security detail.
News — Rep. Tim Burchett accuses Kevin McCarthy of a "sucker punch" to the kidneys and describes heated scene as he chased the former speaker down the hallway.
Said he's the type of the guy who as a kid would "hide behind his mama's skirt."
McCarthy denies it was intentional pic.twitter.com/fBvOUxMb5z— Manu Raju (@mkraju) November 14, 2023
“He’s a bully with $17 million in a security detail,” Burchett told CNN’s Manu Raju. “He’s the type of guy when you’re a kid would throw a rock over the fence and would run home and hide behind his mama’s skirt.”
“That’s not the way we handle things in East Tennessee. If we have a problem with somebody, I’m going to look them in the eye and talk to them,” Burchett added.
While Burchett said the incident was “over with” and dismissed interest in filing an ethics complaint against McCarthy, the Tennessee congressman’s colleague from Florida, Matt Gaetz, took matters into his own hands.
In his formal ethics complaint against McCarthy, Gaetz wrote, “This Congress has seen a substantial increase in breaches of decorum unlike anything we have seen since the pre-Civil War era.”
“I myself have been a victim of outrageous conduct on the House floor as well, but nothing like an open and public assault on a Member, committed by another Member. The rot starts at the top,” Gaetz added.
Gaetz and Burchett were two of eight Republican congressmen who voted to oust McCarthy as Speaker of the House last month.
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Kaitlin Housler is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network. Follow Kaitlin on X / Twitter.
Photo “Kevin McCarthy” by Kevin McCarthy.
Why is he still there, he needs to go, he is an agitator and is worthless.
How about Assault on an Elderly Person, or whatever the name of the law is in D.C.? Different rules for the ruling class, I guess?